Sullivan joins Transit Alternatives Otter Express New Operations Manager
After about 4.3 years of working with Transit Alternatives Otter Express, Cindy Rogholt retired. Rogholt provided a missing connection between the employees, ridership and the director at their transit site. She will miss the people she has gotten to know and work with over the years, but is looking forward to sleeping in and getting retirement projects done around the home.
Rogholt served on the Minnesota Public Transit Association Roadeo committee, helping to plan the event and make it a success. She has many memories of her time working with MPTA, and still believes that transit is an important part of her community. “Without transit many people would have no other mode of transportation to get to where they need to go. We have been able to get people who have no other mode of transportation to jobs, school, medical appointments, hair appointments, groceries, etc.,” Rogholt said.
Although MPTA and Transit Alternatives are both sad to see Rogholt go, they are now welcoming Kayla Sullivan as the new Operations Manager who will be overseeing their drivers and dispatch supervisor.
Sullivan worked for Transit Alternative’s parent company, Productive Alternatives, in the Human Resources department. In that role she has worked with Daryn Toso and some of the Transit employees.
“I have experience in employee relations, organizational benefits, labor laws, job descriptions and postings, and unemployment. I also do photography for our parent company,” Sullivan said.
She is excited to look for changes that can positively impact her department and employees, and has a few goals in mind, as well. “I will look at various avenues to ramp up our social media and marketing. I will review our routes and look for more efficient alternatives. I also will be working with Daryn, our Transit Director, on our fleet and review what is current and what our future needs are,” Sullivan said.
During this year Transit Alternatives had to eliminate a couple of out-of-town routes, and Sullivan will review if that is a need that is current and if they should implement those routes in the future. Her department also has some processes that are pen and paper, and she will implement an electronic process. She will execute an internal employee appreciation process as Sullivan believes happy employees are key to our department’s success.
Not only is she looking forward to how the changes she plans to implement will have a positive impact on her department, but she is also excited to see them take effect at the community level. “We have a large elderly and low income population. I believe transit is extremely important in our area to get persons to where they need to go in a cost-effective manner. We regularly transport people to their jobs so in turn gives them a consistent vehicle to get to and from their jobs. We also take numerous riders to their medical appointments, and without our service they would have a challenging situation,” Sullivan said. Sullivan is excited to meet everyone. She describes herself as open and willing to meet in-person when we can do that, again. In the meantime, she has experience with all types of online meetings.
